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After a year of colossal renovations, Robin Koutecky will open Red Maple, 100 W. Maple St., to the public on Sunday, Feb. 19. The corner bar which formerly housed Ollie's is unrecognizable after Koutecky and team cleaned, fixed, painted and decorated literally every inch of the space.
The results are a cool, cozy combination of a classic Brew City tap and Japanese street art. Red couches, waving cats, thousands of flowers dangling from the ceiling and spectacular murals of dragons and peacocks surround a belly-up bar with comfy seating and an extremely diverse drink menu.
Red Maple will serve specialty, Japanese-themed cocktails like a Cherry Blossom Old Fashioned, Japanese Mojito, "Seven Spice" Japanese Bloody Mary, sake bombs, ciders and a selection of Japanese whiskeys and beers. Local craft beer and spirits, along with macro tap favorites, will also be readily available.
"I love Milwaukee and deeply respect and enjoy Japanese culture," says Koutecky.
Koutecky's daughter, Ella Koutecky, serves as the bar manager and did much of the interior design. She plans to eventually host theme nights featuring Anime, Japanese robots and karaoke.
The elder Koutecky worked at the Mad Planet for 30 years and is also the owner of Clementine's in Bay View. Clementine's is named in honor of the street on which it resides, Clement Avenue.
Koutecky purchased the Red Maple building last year, along with a single-family house and large garage next door. Red Maple, located on First and Maple Streets, is also a nod to the street name.
Koutecky is also renovating the garage into a Japanese comfort food restaurant called The Lucky Cat Curry House. For this part of the venture she partnered with Dani Boettcher, who is Japanese, and plans to serve curries, loco moco, gyoza, rangoons, fried rice and more.
"This is not going to be a sushi bar. Japanese comfort food is different. That's not to say we'll never have sushi, but it would be a special," says Koutecky. "We're going to buy food that's easily available and fresh."
The Lucky Cat will be open past bar time to bring more late-night eats to a city that currently has few options. Red Maple customers will be able to order food from the Lucky Cat and have it run over to the bar.
Like Clementine's, Red Maple will be a friendly, no-fuss space with a commitment to aesthetics and culture. And it's the details that make it.
"Basically, we're going to be a weird mix: a Milwaukee tavern with Japanese flavor that will eventually have Japanese comfort food," says Koutecky. "Consistency is always the key. It's what makes Clementine's so special: always a great bartender, affordable prices and nice people. This is what Red Maple will be like, too."
Red Maple will be open Sunday-Thursday from 11 a.m. to midnight and on Fridays and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 2:30 a.m.
Read about a Milwaukee-themed bar in Japan here.
Molly Snyder started writing and publishing her work at the age 10, when her community newspaper printed her poem, "The Unicorn.” Since then, she's expanded beyond the subject of mythical creatures and written in many different mediums but, nearest and dearest to her heart, thousands of articles for OnMilwaukee.
Molly is a regular contributor to FOX6 News and numerous radio stations as well as the co-host of "Dandelions: A Podcast For Women.” She's received five Milwaukee Press Club Awards, served as the Pfister Narrator and is the Wisconsin State Fair’s Celebrity Cream Puff Eating Champion of 2019.
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